Articles & Case Studies

Chopper pumps help Anglian Water clear blockages

Posted: Wednesday 16th April 2008

Another successful installation of Vaughan‘Chopper’ pumps, supplied by P&MPumps, has resulted in a significant reduction in the problems which were caused by pump blockages that were occurring at an Anglian Water Services Pumping Station, in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire. The Hartford Road Pump Station in Huntingdon is one of a number of facilities within the Anglian Water Region where raw domestic and industrial effluent is collected and processed, with raw sewage being transferred within a dry-well pumping application.

Problems arose, when during high flow conditions, the original pumps became blocked with fibrous rag material and other flotsam contained in the sewage streams. These problems were particularly severe when storm conditions occurred which led to sewage streams backing-up, causing spillage and flooding. Blockages were an on-going problem, with around 2 to 4 pump failures a week during extreme conditions, resulting in high maintenance and labour costs.

Following consultations with solids pumping specialists P&M Pumps, the UK distributor for Vaughan Pumps, Anglian Water purchased three Vaughan PE8N10 Chopper Pumps. These were supplied with 45kw electric motors for transferring sewage from the Hartford Road pumping station to their Huntingdon Sewage Treatment Works at a rate of 155 lit/sec. Since installation the pumps have not failed, despite ragging and other flotsam material being present in sewage streams, also, no mechanical failures have been reported due to abrasive wear.

The Hartford Road pumping station has been operating for 2 years without the need for any unscheduled visits due to pump failures. In addition the hydraulic performance of the Vaughan pumps exactly meets the target flows set by Anglian Water, with no drop in performance. Commenting on the pump’s performance, Mick Tomblin, Site Engineer at Hartford Road said, “We have overcome all of the operational problems we were experiencing, pump failures due to ragging etc. have been eliminated andwe appreciate the pump’s ability to handle rag matter easily and efficiently”. He added, “P&M Pumps offered a guarantee from the outset that these pumps would not block and they have proven reliable within a very difficult application”.

Through their experiences at the Anglian Water site and other installations, P&M Pumps have been able to demonstrate that their products and expertise can bring significant cost-savings. In most cases, retrofitting Vaughan Chopper Pumps in the correct areas to deal effectively with the process, can be self-financing, with payback periods of less than one year, thereafter minimising the effect to the budget holders. ENDS.